Breakup Buddies
by BabyBrown
Summary: A series of prompts about Andy and Nick. Features all characters but are focused mainly on Andy/Nick. (Open for requests.)
1. Truth or Dare

Prompt:** truth or dare **

(_written for petragem on omg_rookieblue_)

* * *

The game starts as a simple diversion; a way to break up the tedious passage of time in their safe house.

The first time they play, Nick ends up painting his toenails pink and Andy laughs for a week.

The second time they play, Nick finds out Andy hates all licorice, even Twizzlers, and he's convinced she's not human.

The third time they play, Andy flashes the poor teenager at the door delivering their pizza and Nick sorta feels jealous.

The last time they play, Nick's gazing down at her face, flushed and beautiful in the moonlight, his fingers gently caressing the skin around her belly button, and Andy's dare getting lost in the softness of his lips.


	2. Candy Crush

Prompt: **how do you keep an idiot busy for hours**

(_written for lowriseflare on omg_rookieblue_)

* * *

"Oh my god will you stop playing that stupid game for five minutes?" Andy throws a pillow at him, one he deflects without even looking.

"Hey, just because you can't get past level nine does not make it a stupid game." Nick says, smiling to himself as he beats another level. "Booyah! Level fifty!" He then turns to his partner, "you sure you don't want me to beat that level for you? I know you've been stuck on it for days." He teases, making Andy want nothing more than to punch him in his stupid face.

"You suck." Andy mopes into her mug of day old coffee.

"Aw, you're just jealous of my awesome skills." He boasts, immediately becoming absorbed in crushing garishly colored candy.

"Whatever, I'm going to go make some more coffee. This tastes like ass." She kicks him as she gets off the couch, hoping to effectively convey her annoyance, before walking into the kitchen.

Sitting at the kitchen counter, she pulls out her cellphone and opens up an app. As level seventy loads, an impish smile appears on her face.

"What an idiot" she mutters under her breath, pleased with her plan to get him to sit still and shut up for more than ten minutes at a time.


	3. Practice Makes Perfect

Prompt:** out of control but you're playing a role**

_(written for earnmysong on omg_rookieblue)_

* * *

"Make pretend I'm Gail." Andy suggests, rather unhelpfully in his opinion.

"You don't think that's kind of weird?" Nick interjects, arms going stiff around her waist as he imagines what Gail would be saying at her suggestion.

Andy shrugs, completely undaunted by what they are about to do. "Not if it gets the job done."

_(When she said she was in this 110%, she wasn't kidding.)_

This makes Nick smirk, his body relaxing in familiar territory. Banter was always easy with her. "Have lots of practice with faking it, do you?" He says, laughing when he sees the blush on her cheeks.

"Hey, if we don't make this look halfway convincing, we are gonna be going home in body bags." Andy says, her fingers twisting his collar, eyebrows furrowed with worry.

"Wow, that's not a lot of pressure to load on a guy _at all_. Don't you think you're overreacting just a smidgen?" He wonders if it's not too late to back out of this assignment. McNally could be a bit intense sometimes.

Andy rolls her eyes, "just shut up and kiss me, Collins."

Taking a deep breath, Nick leans in. Right before their lips touch, however, he whispers something that later ends up being prophetic.

"Just promise me one thing," his breath tickles her upper lip.

"What?" She responds, breathless in a way he doesn't want to decipher.

"Don't fall in love with me."


	4. You're Lucky

Prompt:** all i need is life, love, with you**

_(written for petragem on omg_rookieblue)_

* * *

"You're lucky." Andy comments over a beer after their debriefing. She's exhausted but her wounded pride, not to mention broken heart, just won't let her sleep. Thankfully, she didn't have to drink alone. That would have been too pathetic even for her.

Nick points at the bruise forming under his left eye. "You call a punch in the face lucky? I shudder to think what you consider blessed."

"Yeah, at least she cared you were gone." Andy says distractedly as she peels the label off her bottle, not taking the bait he's thrown at her. It would be so easy to fall back into their easy banter, to forget the last two hours, but she's tired.

"I'm sure he missed you Andy." Six months with only each other to trust gave them great insight into the other's psyche. It was an asset undercover but she's not so sure about it now back in their real life.

"Really?" Andy looks in Sam and Marlo's direction, the happy couple now entering the bar. As if her day couldn't get any worse.

"Doesn't seem like it." She says, heart twanging painfully at their uncomplicated smiles. Seeing the slippery slope she's approaching, Nick bumps her hip with his to distract her.

"You're amazing Andy. If he can't see that, then he doesn't deserve you." He deems himself victorious when the corners of her mouth turn upwards.

"Wow. You're really taking that breakup buddy thing to heart." She rolls her eyes but the smile doesn't lie, she's pleased with his words.

Nick decides to go one step further. "Honestly, if I had to pick, I'd pick you. No contest. We'd have the best life. White picket fence, dog, 4.5 kids."

"You're forgetting the weekly near-death experiences." Andy ribs, still a tiny bit pissed over his stunt with the gun earlier.

"That's a given" Nick says, but at least has the decency to look apologetic.

"Don't let Gail hear you." Andy elbows him playfully, but she can't hide her content smile. "She'll punch out your other eye."

Nick chuckles, "it's not like she can do any more damage. I'm gonna look like a raccoon for the next couple days."

Andy's smile gets smaller, but no less sincere. "Thanks Nick."

He shrugs and takes a sip of beer. "It's what I'm here for."


	5. Burritos

Prompt:** Andy and Nick watch spanish novelas**

* * *

"Do you even know what they're saying?" Nick says, plopping down onto the couch next to her. The television that came with the cover apartment was a crappy twenty inch set with some janky ass coloring. Blues were green and yellows were orange. It made for some interesting tv when they were drunk.

"Mhmm." Andy hums, mouth full with a burrito from the place across the street. She had told him that it was her one comfort away from home and he always brought her back a couple after completing a job. It was the least he could do since he knows how much she hates being "the chick" on this assignment. As his "girlfriend," she was allowed only basic knowledge, along with whatever Nick shared with her and their handler, but it still wasn't enough for her. When she took this job, she thought she'd have a bigger part to play, hated not having one, but bit her tongue and did her job. Her ability to squash all personal feelings so it didn't get in the way of her job was what made her a great cop, and Nick admired her. She would have been a great soldier.

"Really," Nick reaches for a burrito, smiles when she slaps him hand away. "Then what's happening?"

Andy swallows and watches the drama unfolding before her intently. "That girl, who is supposed to be eighteen but come on she doesn't look older than fifteen who do they think they fooling, is having an affair with that guy, the Fabio wannabe." Nick rolls his eyes at her descriptions, but lets her continue. "Problem is she's the daughter of Fabio Lite's father, so that would make them half-siblings, _but_," she holds up a finger before Nick can comment "Fabio Lite's father had married his mother when she was already pregnant with another man's baby. So turns out they aren't siblings at all, but nobody bothers to tell them that."

"That's intense." Nick comments...and can't wait to knock the smug look off her face. "But I know you totally googled that. You left your search window open on the computer."

Andy throws the control at his head, clipping his ear, but not before he grabs a burrito and runs out of the room.

"Oh, I'm so gonna get him for that." She mutters to herself, unwrapping another burrito.


	6. He Knows He Shouldn't Miss Her

Prompt:** He knows he shouldn't miss her but he does**

* * *

It's his first week back in uniform and he's stoked. Undercover was fun for the first couple weeks, but it got old fast.

He missed walking the street, badge flashing proudly against his chest, publicly announcing he was a servant of justice.

He missed the respect of the people, the admiration of little kids, the fear in the eyes of criminals.

The only bright spot had been Andy...and he _misses_ her. (_Which is completely ridiculous since they still see each other every day_.)

He misses the way she used to hog the bathroom, spending hours getting ready even when the end result was the same as if she had only spent ten minutes. She's _that_ pretty and it kinda made his heart hurt. _(What the hell was wrong with Swarek that he ever let her get away?)_

He misses the way she would hog all the food and spend her nights writing in that red diary of hers. Nick was never tempted to read it, and he never asked, but there was nothing about Andy that was secretive. She would openly read her entries to him, extremely eager to hear his thoughts, and he felt trusted in a way he never had before._  
_

He misses the first couple weeks they spent in bed together.

No, not like _that_.

It was actually what he imagined sleeping next to a sister would be like. The idea was to help them get used to encroaching on each other's personal space. Andy liked to call it method acting, and he knew exactly where she learned that from. (_He also knew "method acting" wouldn't have flown if it had been his idea.) _And then _it_ happened. One night they got drunk, like really "I'm the best dancer in the world" drunk, and they kissed. He still doesn't know who initiated it but the end result was the same. They ended up sleeping together.

And yes, like _that_.

He can still feel the soft curve of her shoulder beneath his lips, the salty taste of her skin after a hot day making him thirsty for more. All thoughts of Gail and Sam completely disappeared and he had become captivated by her. By her delicious lips as they bit his. By her supple yet strong legs as they wrapped around his waist, pulling him closer to her wet heat. By the way her nose crinkled as he thrust hard and deep...

"Hey Collins. Stop daydreaming and get back to work." Andy slaps him on the side of the head as she passes by him in the kitchen.

Nick knows he shouldn't miss her...but he does.

* * *

_This one was fun to write =)_


	7. Nightmares

Prompt: **_she swears the moon don't hang quite as high as it used to  
_**

(written for earnmysong)

* * *

She has nightmares.

It's something they both don't see coming until she's knocking on his door at three am, hair plastered to her forehead and bruise like shadows beneath her eyes, a puddle of water collecting at her feet.

"Andy?" Nick rubs the sleep out of his eyes, his body immediately going into protective mode when it comes to her; remnants of being undercover and having to watch each other's backs constantly.

"I can't sleep." She says after a deep breath. "I know it's late, and I know we aren't responsible for each other anymore but I can't sleep. When I close my eyes, all I see is that gun in your hand."

Nick, stomach churning with guilt, opens his mouth to apologize but Andy stops him with a raised hand.

"I'm not angry with you," Andy reassures him. She then tilts her, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips. "Well I'm more pissed than angry, but mostly at the sucky situation. I know you did what you had to do, and despite how I reacted, I do trust you." Her eyes bore into his, making sure he gets how sincere she's being. He hates how it feels like being let off the hook.

"Well for whatever it's worth, I am really sorry Andy." He takes another look at her dripping wet clothes, and a corner of his mouth rises. "But you didn't have to come all the way over here, in the pouring rain, to tell me that. Do I have to worry about you holding up a stereo to my window?" Joking is easy with her. It's where they lived for seven months in order to keep themselves from going nuts with the isolation.

It's when her eyes start watering, face scrunching up pitifully, that he knows the nightmares aren't solely about the gun in her face.

"He moved on." Andy sobs heartbreakingly, and Nick immediately pulls her in for a hug. In the past couple months, he's come to see her as a sister, as well as a serious candidate for best friend, and he hates seeing her in such pain.

"I'm really sorry but I had nowhere else to go." She mumbles into his t-shirt, fingers digging into his shoulder blades.

"Andy, you don't have to apologize," he chuckles in disbelief. "You never have to apologize. Not to me."

Hand on her lower back, he steers her into the living room, her body shivering beneath his fingertips. A gear bag and six months worth of unopened mail are already on the couch, and Nick shoves them onto the floor. Depositing Andy in the empty spot left behind, he removes her soaking jacket and shoes. Leaving her for a moment, he quietly goes to close the door to his bedroom, praying it's one of those nights when Gail sleeps like a rock for thirteen hours straight.

When he returns, he sees she's still shivering and he wraps her in a towel he swiped from the hallway closet. Lightly rubbing her shoulders, he tells her "I'll go make you some tea."

Andy's face brightens a bit. "Your special tea?"

Nick nods, happy to make her feel better, even if for shallow reasons. "Yeah, my special tea."

* * *

When Nick returns, a striped blue mug filled with steaming tea, he finds Andy asleep on the couch, a growing wet patch on the couch beneath her.

Nick smiles, softly touching her cheek with his fingertips. He feels like kissing her forehead, and ends up succumbing to the urge. Andy sighs in contentment beneath him and he covers her with the blanket hanging over the back of the couch.

"Goodnight Andy." He whispers, before going back to his room.

* * *

Nick doesn't notice a pair of suspicious blue eyes peering at him from behind the bedroom door, but that's a problem for another day.


	8. Burnt Toast

Prompt: **Burnt toast**

* * *

_He burned my toast that morning._

That's all Andy can think about as Nick points a gun at her head. It isn't her father, or her mother or Traci.

Hell, it isn't even Sam 'Too Little, Too Late' Swarek.

Instead, it's Nick and his damn inability to make a simple breakfast, and at least give her a decent last meal before he shoots her.

_For my last meal, instead of something interesting, I got burnt toast and coffee that had the consistency of tar._

Andy can feel her heart pounding, half convinced it's gonna just burst right out of her chest.

_At least it'll save Nick the trouble. _She thinks sardonically, contradictory tears running down her face. She can hear the imaginary peanut gallery in her head, making fun of her for being such a _girl_.

_Give me a break, I've got a gun in my face and maybe two seconds before I'm lying in a pool of my own blood. _ She yells in her head. It's her death and she'll cry if she wants to.

Nick keeps trying to make eye contact with her, keeps asking her to trust him, but she can't. She wants to, _oh how she wants to,_ but she can't force a feeling. With the luck she's been having, it would be the cherry on top of a terrible year if she was killed by friendly fire.

_Nick would appreciate that my military knowledge has increased with the length of our friendship._

The gun is empty (_the bastard actually pulled the trigger_) and Andy is thankful she's alive.

But not thankful enough to stop the revenge she's already planning in her head.

_I do owe him after all._

* * *

_I really want to thank all of you for the follows and favorites, as well as all the reviews! They really make my day!_


	9. Yearly Drinking Binge

Prompt:** Nick's yearly drinking binge**

* * *

"Why don't you call Gail?" She asks him, chides him, for the millionth time since she showed up at his apartment. Nick lifts his head from the couch and turns to her, wishing that the walls would stop spinning.

"Why when I've got you?" He slurs drunkenly, trying and failing to give her an alluring smile. Andy gives him a look, her 'don't bullshit' me look, and Nick sighs.

"I don't want to bother her with this. It'll remind her of Jerry and she _just_ stopped blaming herself." Nick admits, his voice low and lacking its usual mirth.

Andy smacks him in the shoulder. "That's exactly why you should call her, Dummy." Despite how rip roaring drunk he is, he can see the way her breath catches at the word, her eyes widening slightly. 'Dummy' was something Sam used to call her, his own term of endearment for the brunette detective. Nick knows this because he's been _her_ sober buddy before, and she was a big talker once you got half a bottle of tequila in her.

Nick watches as she regains her composure, pink tongue darting forward to lick her dry lips.

"She'll be able to sympathize," Andy frowns in contemplation, "or is it empathize?"

She shakes her head. "Whatever. She'll know how you feel cause she's been through it too."

Nick sighs, taking another long sip from the bottle in his hands. How can he explain to Andy that she's the one he wants in this moment? That he feels safe with her in a way he's never felt with Gail?

If he was sober, he'd realize that it isn't just a one time feeling, but that he's felt like this ever since he's come back from being undercover.

Gail was constantly asking him for explanations as to why he didn't contact her, constantly asking for more commitment from him. With Gail, it's like he always has to be on his toes, always worrying about whether he's being a good enough boyfriend to her. It's exhausting.

Nick knows she deserves more, deserves _better_, but he's not going to leave her.

Not again.

Nick reaches a hand out to Andy, her hand soft and warm beneath his palm, hoping his own isn't clammy.

"I don't want to talk about Gail, _please _Andy." He adds when she opens her mouth, hoping she'll let him deal with this the way he wants to. And the way he wants to deal with it is sitting on his couch, watching crappy tv with her and _only_ her.

Searching his eyes, he sees her sigh in defeat. "Fine, but promise me you won't barf when I inevitably have to carry you to your bed, Princess." She winks, settling back into her seat and flipping the channel.

Nick smiles, leaning back into the sofa cushions. "Not making any promises McNally."


	10. Sober Mistakes

**Prompt**: Sober mistakes **(RATING M)**

***  
**_(no really, it's smut)_

* * *

"This is bad..._really_, _really_ bad." Breaths mingle in the tight closet, hearts beating to the same wildly insane drummer.

"I know." His fingers delve into her long brown hair, nails scraping against the back of her neck. She pulls away reluctantly, hating both herself and him for how good this feels. She hasn't felt this good since...well, she doesn't want to think about that right now.

"You just broke up with Gail." She pants, knowing they need to address the elephant in the room before going any further...and _oh,_ does she want to go further. It's amazing how her libido can go from zero to sixty with a simple touch; something becoming quite a problem whenever they sit together in Parade, the entire station within viewing distance. (_An image of him fingering her beneath the table pops into her mind, and she can feel the liquid heat pooling in her belly, exacerbated by his fingers currently kneading her right breast_.)

"I know." His tongue licks a path up her neck before biting the soft flesh, like he wants to tear her open and crawl inside. Head leaning back, she winces as he marks her, warning off other men that she's his...even though she isn't. (_The same urge is growing within her own breast, her mouth aching to claim him as her own...even though he's not.)_

"And Sam is just outside." For once, the name doesn't incite a pang of heartbreak. No, it incites something else...it makes her feel powerful,_ (not to mention incredibly_ _hot_,) knowing the man who broke her heart is outside the door somewhere, not even knowing she's being felt up by another man.

Speaking of...Andy lets out a ragged gasp when Nick's fingers slide across the warm flesh of her lower abdomen, disappointing her when he moves no further.

Instead, this time he's the one to pull back, eyes glazed over with desire as he takes a moment to catch his breath. The way he looks at her makes her feel like the most beautiful woman he's ever seen, and even though she knows it's just the lust coursing through her blood, the thought makes her even wetter.

"What do you want Andy?" He asks, fingers teasing the skin above her panties. She feels her clit throbbing painfully, wanting nothing more than the relief of release, and throws her previous reservations to the wind.

"You," she pants, "I want you." Her mouth widens, inhaling sharply, when he inserts a finger into her cunt.

No, she isn't his...at least not yet.


	11. Fireworks

**Prompt**: Fireworks

_(Okay so was it me or did Nick have some serious Andy feelings in this episode? They weren't vocal or even that obvious but come ON, did you see the look on his face when he saw her?! I'm shutting up now.)_

* * *

There's only one thing on Nick's mind as he stands at the bar waiting for his and Gail's drinks; fireworks.

It's the word Cynthia Kudlow used to describe her relationship with McRae, the ex-convict. An all consuming, intense experience that she wished she never had...and it made him think about his own relationship with Gail.

When he first met Gail, a force of nature behind red lipstick, he knew he was lucky. Lucky that a woman like that would even look at him twice. So he forced himself to jump through all her hoops, forced himself to commit, forced himself to propose that night they got drunk at her family's annual bbq...forced himself to leave her when he realized there were no fireworks.

So he went to war, and after losing more friends than he could stand, he spiraled into self-hatred, called himself an idiot for ever leaving Gail the way he did. Nick promised himself that he would try to make it right when, and if, he ever survived the war.

For a while it was good. He could see the best parts of Gail, see the soft underbelly of the woman he wanted so desperately to love, and he tried his hardest to make it work.

But then he met Andy McNally, and he finally understood the meaning of fireworks.

She was honest, loyal and funny, not to mention beautiful, and he was in awe of her. Over the six months they spent together holed up in a dingy cramped apartment, he found out she had a weakness for burritos, loved watching spanish soap operas even though she didn't speak a lick of spanish, and was still madly in love with Sam Swarek. (He's not blind. Denial is his modus operandi after all.) It still didn't stop him from falling for her _hard_. She was like no other person he had ever met and he knew that he wanted to spend every waking minute with her.

To say that easy kind of devotion didn't surprise him...well _surprise_!

It's in that moment, his complete acceptance of his feelings for Andy, when he sees her entering the Penny. He quickly starts thinking of something to say, something to make her laugh that deep bellied laugh he loves, when he sees Swarek following close behind. Nick's stomach drops to the floor.

Andy is the fireworks he's been waiting for, and he'll never have her.


	12. Huge Mistake

**Prompt:** Huge mistake

* * *

"I have made a huge mistake."

Nick rolls his eyes, "okay, no more _Arrested Development_ for you."

A peal of laughter escapes her mouth before apparently remembering the reason for searching him out. "No, really. I have made a huge mistake."

Nick sighs, not sure if he wants to hear what the she's done. "Okay, so what is this _huge mistake_ that you don't even look remotely sorry for."

"I slept with Sam...again." Nick feels six months of progress go down the toilet.

"Andy!" He tugs her arm, bringing her off to the side of the room. "Do I have to remind you that he didn't just break your heart, but he also took a sledgehammer to the shattered pieces? Oh, not to mention the guy has a _girlfriend_."

"I know, I know. I'm a terrible person." She throws her hands up in supplication, but honestly, she doesn't even look remotely distressed. Having sex probably takes the edge of the guilt, he thinks sardonically.

"Where did this happen, and please tell me you didn't do it in my truck again because I _just_ got it cleaned." He pleads, internally shuddering at the last time he had gone to the car wash.

"In the bathroom." She admits, a sheepish look on her face. Nick looks around the room and sees Sam sitting with Oliver and Marlo, his eyes constantly moving back to look at Andy.

"With everyone, including Marlo, sitting out here none the wiser? Andy, do you really want to do this? From what you told me about Callaghan, I didn't think _you'd_ want to be the other woman."

At the mention of Luke, he sees her face turn into itself, her eyebrows knitting together, and he knows he hit a nerve.

"I'm sorry Andy." He says, hating the look on her face and the fact that he put it there. But the last time she made a "mistake," she had Nick promise her that he'd try his best as her breakup buddy to help her see reason.

"It's just...I love him, Nick." She shrugs, her voice is small and laced with defeat, like all the strength has left her.

Nick hates seeing her look so dejected, and he brings her in for a hug, glaring at Sam from over her head. "I know Andy. I know."


	13. Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match

**Prompt:** the one where Nick sets Andy up on a date with his handsome war hero buddy, in full view of everyone at the Penny or station.  
**Word Count:** 1019 (_longest drabble I've written for these two loveable dorks!)  
_

**Author's Note: **I really want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for the best reviews I've ever received! So I'm thanking you with another, _longer_, update!_  
_

* * *

"How do I look?" Wearing a sexy emerald green dress with a plunging neckline, Andy twirls for him in heels that don't look even remotely safe. Nick can barely take his eyes off her. In his opinion, he thinks she looks much too sexy for a first date, but immediately schools his expression into something a supportive friend would wear. He's gotten extremely adept at hiding his growing feelings for the lion-hearted cop; hell, he was the one who set up her date with his old war buddy in the first place, and didn't want one stupid unguarded look to blow his cover.

"You look perfect, but you already knew that." He tacks that rib on at the end to shake the inappropriate thoughts suddenly flooding his brain.

_(Like her wearing those heels and little else.)_

Andy, unaware of the dirty place his mind is at, sticks her tongue at him even though she doesn't deny his observation. Walking over to the mirror, she starts applying a sheer pink gloss onto her lips, smacking them together for an even coat. Makeup to her satisfaction, she looks back over her shoulder and asks Nick if he can zip her dress up.

"Zip me up?"

"Sure." The mouth of the zipper starts dangerously low on her back, and his palms start sweating as he looks down at the long strip of tan skin. (_He imagines himself running his fingers up and down the column of her back, softly but deftly pushing the straps of the dress off her shoulders and placing a kiss there.)_

Nick quickly does up the zipper and immediately goes back to his place on the bench.

Andy smiles at him through the mirror, "Thanks."

"No sweat." He says as he feels a bead of moisture run down the back of his neck.

"So what's this guy's name?" She fluffs her hair and then picks up her clutch, rifling through its contents to make sure she has everything she needs. Nick stops himself from asking if one of those items is a condom, but frankly, it's none of his business. (_And he doesn't think he can handle the idea of Andy in bed with another guy...maybe setting her up on dates was a bad idea._)

"Richard Johnson."

A tiny giggle escapes her mouth. "Are you serious? You set me up with a guy named Dick Johnson?"

Nick holds up three fingers, "Dick Johnson the Third."

"Oh God, there's three of them?! He probably got picked on so badly in school." A thought occurs to her and she whips around, pointing her clutch at him. "_Please_ tell me he's not one of those creepy guys who spends all their time in the basement, fantasizing about going on dates with actual girls while their blowup dolls slowly deflate next to them?"

A big smile spreads across his face; she was too much sometimes. "Of course not Andy. Do you really have such little faith in my match-making abilities? Besides, when have I ever steered you wrong?"

Andy snorts, turning back to the mirror. "I don't think I can count that high."

He puts a hand on his heart as if she's deeply wounded him. "Oof."

"You'll live." She says, rolling her eyes at him, but with a smile tugging at her lips. A shadow of uncertainty suddenly passes over her face and he watches her bite her lip in consternation. "What's this Dick Johnson like? Is he above board?"

Nick walks over to her and rests his hands on her shoulders in support. "He's a good guy Andy. Trust me, I wouldn't set you up with anything but the best. I'm your breakup buddy after all." He smiles softly at her reflection, his thumbs gently massaging her shoulder blades. It's in that moment when someone walks into the locker room.

"Andy, your date's here." Traci announces, eying Nick's hands on Andy's shoulders with a guarded look. "And I think you better get out there and save him. Sam's trying to be _charming_." Traci raises her eyebrows and Andy sighs knowingly, patting Nick on the shoulder as she passes by.

"I'll call you later buddy." She says over her shoulder, heels quickly clicking against the hard floor, Nick and Traci following after her at a slower pace.

As the two stand at the entrance of the locker room, they watch together as Andy greets her date with a firm handshake. They also both notice that Sam is off to the side with a scowl on his face...and an equally unhappy Marlo standing by his side.

"Why do you keep doing this?" Traci asks, arms folded across her chest. Nick's unsure what she means...at least that's how he plays it.

"I don't know what you mean." He turns to face her, but Traci's eyes stay trained on Andy.

"Why do you keep setting Andy up on dates when you have feelings for her." This time Traci's eyes meet his and he suddenly feels exposed. "And don't insult my intelligence by denying it." She adds on when he opens his mouth to _deny deny deny_.

"Is it that obvious?" He asks, his throat feeling drier than during his tour in the Sahara desert.

"No, I just have a sixth sense about these things." She reassures him, and he feels air rushing back into his lungs.

"She's still in love with Swarek." Hours of Andy's drunk lamenting still ringing in his ears.

Traci shrugs, "maybe she just needs the right guy to move on with." Nick's thoughts go into overdrive; did she just give him her blessing?

"Maybe I'm not ready for a new relationship." He admits, still reeling from the fact Gail dumped him for a woman named Holly. _ (It's not like he didn't deserve it for being a shitty boyfriend...but it stung being the one left behind; he deserved _that_ too.)_

"Oh, I think you're ready. Especially since you've been in love with her since you two went undercover." Traci smirks at him and then walks away, not bothered by the bomb she just left in her wake.


	14. Getting Dumped

**Prompt**: When Nick finds out Gail kisses Holly _(I'm slowly catching up with all your requests!)_

* * *

"So _what_, you're a lesbian now?" There's disbelief in his voice, as well as thinly disguised betrayal. _Of course_ she'd dump him in the middle of the station, their co-workers awkwardly trying to ignore them as they check their weapons.

"I'm Gail Peck, same person I've always been...and you don't get to make any judgements, not after what you've been doing." She scowls at him, safely discharging her weapon.

His hackles rise. "What's _that_ supposed to mean?" He's never been unfaithful to Gail...maybe he's abandoned her twice, but he's never been unfaithful.

Gail rolls her eyes, checking her gun to make sure it's properly holstered. "Oh please, don't think I haven't seen the puppy dog eyes you've been giving Andy. I _know_ those eyes; those eyes used to belong to _me_." _ (Nick is suddenly glad Andy is out sick with the flu.)_

Despite the bravado, there's betrayal in Gail's voice as well, and Nick is now starting to understand just how much pain he's caused her...even if it _was_ unintentional.

"And don't even deny it," she holds up a hand, preemptively stopping him from speaking. "I know you've said nothing happened undercover, and I believe you, but you've been different ever since you came back. Whenever perfect Andy needs something, you're always there with a bottle of tequila and a freaking shoulder to cry on." She laughs derisively, "I'd be jealous of her if I wasn't so pissed at both of you right now."

Nick rubs the back of his neck, not even knowing where to start. He settles for "I'm sorry," even though the words don't seem like nearly enough.

"Save the waterworks Collins, I'm moving on...with someone who actually _wants_ to wait for me." She adds the last part intentionally to hurt him, and he takes it knowing he deserves it.

Gail starts walking towards the door, but stops mid-stride. Turning around, she has a decisive look on her face and Nick gets slightly terrified of the gun at her side. But like she's always done, Gail surprises him.

"I know I bust your balls, and heaven knows you deserve it," she then takes a deep breath, "but you are good guy...even if you couldn't be that guy for me." He can tell that it's killing her to say those words.

"So don't screw this up." She slaps his face rather harshly in the same place she punched him weeks ago, then walks back out the room.

"And the term is bisexual, dumbass." Gail calls over her shoulder, multiple heads turning, as she exits the weapons room.


	15. Love Love Love

**Prompt**: the one where Nick realizes he's fully committed to Andy and doesn't run like he did with Gail_ (requested by Tarafina)_

* * *

"Come on Nick! Shake your tail feather!" Andy yells over the loud music, dancing in place next to him, her intense energy reminding him of kids on a sugar high. The glow-in-the-dark jewelry adorning her neck and wrists help give the mental image credibility. For the umpteenth time, he's glad he surprised her with concert tickets to one of her favorite groups, especially when he feels her elation filling the air around them.

Nick watches as a bead of sweat coasts down her neck, and a rush of desire flows through him. He suddenly can't wait to lick her sweat slicked skin when they get back to her place, the taste of her decadent on his tongue. A warm tide suffuses his body at the thought, relief also present when he realizes he no longer has anything to feel guilty about. Now, he can have her whenever he wants, and she, in turn, has proven to want him just as much...and sometimes more. Nick's never encountered the kind of stamina she's packing and sometimes he feels overwhelmed, like he can't keep up, and it occasionally reminds him of Gail. She was also a force of nature that turned him about in every direction, making him search for the way up.

That's where the similarity ends though. The rest of his feelings for both women are like day and night, with Andy now being the sun that guides him.

She makes him feel grounded, makes him feel like anything is possible with her unfailing optimism and lion heart.

But don't be mistaken, their relationship isn't all rainbows and unicorns. They fight. Sometimes they'll get into intense screaming matches, usually about something that happened on shift. Being in daily life-or-death situations took its toll on their relationship even though they both knew it was in the job description. Still, that didn't stop them from being terrified of something happening to the other. Both Andy and Nick had a soldier's mind, that the job came first no matter what, so it always made them go the extra mile to get the job done. An extra mile that had the potential of being a permanent separation.

Sometimes, if the fighting is really bad, Nick will leave the apartment. His, hers, whichever one they were staying in that night. But the thing about Andy is that she believes that even when he leaves, he'll always come back. She knows that sometimes he needs time to himself, because she needs it too, and doesn't make him feel like he's lacking because of it. And _that_, the unshakeable faith in him, is what keeps him coming back. Keeps making him want to work at their problems and have great makeup sex afterwards. (_The fighting almost makes it worth it._)

With Gail, he felt like he was drowning, whereas Andy felt like the air in his lungs.

As for Sam, well, he thought the guy would be everywhere in their relationship; not _physically,_ but like a giant psychic scar, and it made Nick terrified of losing Andy on a daily basis. But he bottled it up and away; like he learned to in Afghanistan every time he saw a fallen comrade or a child with a bomb. (_At least he thought he bottled up his insecurity successfully. It wasn't until one night in bed, Andy's warm leg draped low over his hips, that she told him to stop being so stupid. She was with Nick because she wanted to be, because he got her in ways Sam never did...and never could.)_

Now whenever he sees Sam, he just feels lucky the guy was an idiot, which Andy constantly tells him is weird although Nick _knows_ she agrees.

Especially when she looks at him like she's doing right now: the breathless smile, the unbelievably happy glint in her eyes...the gentle scraping of her nails against the back of his neck as she pulls him down towards her.

Having been so lost in his thoughts, he hadn't realized that the lead singer was now crooning about _love love love_; a slow song sifting through the air like a lazy kiss, Andy wrapping her arms around his neck as she entices his body to sway with hers.

"Hey." The smile on her face is radiant and contagious.

"Hey back." He responds, feeling an equally radiant smile spreading across his lips.

"Happy anniversary, Collins." Her breath is a sweet candy flavored whisper against his lips. It's in these moments, he realizes that even though he had no idea she existed at the time, _she_ is the reason why he survived the war. Every single bullet, every single wound, every moment of fear was leading up to this: to her arms and to happiness he never thought possible.

Nick smooths back a wet piece of hair behind her ear, and she closes her eyes in contentment.

"Happy anniversary, Andy." His mouth softly presses against hers, his arms wrapping around her like he never intends to let her go.


	16. Cheer Me Up

**Prompt**: Cheer me up _(I apologize for how fluffy this is. I just _had _to get it out of my system and we will never speak of it again.)_

* * *

"Andy?" Nick calls out as he enters the apartment, letting himself in with his key. When he got off shift, he was greeted with a dozen teary messages from Andy and alarms had sounded in his head when she didn't pick up his calls.

"Go away!" Relief floods him when he hears her voice, even despite her sudden disinterest to see him. He had been going crazy with worry, worst case scenarios flooding his thoughts, and he had broken a few speeding laws on his way over.

Pinpointing her location by her voice, he walks to the door of the bedroom and is completely unprepared for what he sees.

Stifling his laughter, Nick sees her lying on the floor in her underwear and with an adorably miserable look on her face...although she'd probably get her gun out of the safety box if she knew what he was thinking. Seeing the piles of discarded clothes all over the room, Nick finally understands the reason behind her hysterical voice messages.

Being five months pregnant has not been agreeing with Andy. Especially since she's just entered her "_nothing fits me because I'm a fat cow_" phase.

"Andy," his voice is soft and understanding, and he can tell she hates it by the crinkle of her nose.

"Stop. I can't handle you being boyfriend of the year right now. Not when I look like this." She gestures to her lower body, her belly button pointing straight up in the air like an antenna, voice hiccuping slightly with unshed tears.

Knowing there's only one thing that will cheer her up when she gets like this, Nick lies down in the spot next to her and tells her about his shift. He tells her about the teenage taggers he chased down an alley and he tells her about the burglary he and Dov prevented.

He goes on doing this for twenty minutes. When he gets to the part about a domestic disturbance, he know she's feeling better when her hand slides into his. Pressing a soft kiss to the back of her hand, he lays it on his chest, over his heart, and continues recounting tales of his day.


	17. Hickeys

**Prompt**: _Also it would be funny to have one about him (Nick) marking her neck and everyone freaking out or something _(requested by rebelangel566)

* * *

"Hey, Andy! Busy day?" Dov calls out from across the bullpen, laughing to Oliver next to him. For his part Ollie just looks annoyed with him, and gives Andy an apologetic look before whisking him away...but not before oddly scratching his neck. Andy chalks it up to the full moon currently out and brushes Dov and his eccentricities off. She spots a figure exiting the locker room, alone, and rushes to catch up.

"Sam!" Andy calls out, wanting to catch him before he left the station. Even though things were still a bit tense between them, they seemed to be on the same wavelength when it came to work; making sure to act cordial and professional with each other while on the job. Maybe one day, they'll get their friendship back...and who knows, maybe more_. (At least, that's what she _used_ to hope for. Now...she's not so sure, the previous night coming back to her in warm flashes_.)

Expecting a smile or a harmless quip, she's put off by the dark look on his face, which she notices getting darker the closer she gets, telling her he's in bad mood.

"McNally." He says curtly, fidgeting in a way he rarely (_read: never_) does. It immediately makes her ill at ease, him looking at her like she killed the damn dog he doesn't even own.

"Uh, are you going to the Penny later? I need a ride. Nick abandoned me for a hot date with a senior citizen." Andy laughs self-consciously, still unable to pinpoint the reason for his bad mood. As for Nick, she's referring to the emergency call at the nursing home a mile away that detained him and the new rookie, Chloe.

"Sorry. I can't. I'm meeting Marlo." He denies her sharply, the mention of his new girlfriend feeling like a deliberate slap in the face. Ever since that night in his truck, they skirted around the subject of Marlo, barely talking about her unless it was unavoidable. _This_ was a direct violation of their unspoken rule.

"Oh. Sorry I asked." She says, her hands, as well as her walls, flying up.

"I'm sorry, Andy." His eyes soften slightly, but he still looks pissed. Andy stuffs her hand into her pockets and backs away.

"See you later then." She doesn't wait for his response, quickly turning on her heel and turning the corner. Her entire body flushes with anger and a little bit of embarrassment as she wonders what the hell that was about._  
_

Looking through the glass separating the detectives from the rest of the station, she sees Traci deep in conversation with someone she doesn't recognize. So Andy goes looking for a ride from someone else, not wanting to disturb her while she's working.

Luckily, she spots Chris in the kitchen, his head ducked as he rifles through the cabinets.

"Isn't Denise feeding you?" She bumps his hip and goes to sit on the counter next to him. Chris grins good-naturedly, shutting the cabinet. He opens his mouth to say something, but the words freeze in his mouth when he looks at her. Checking the immediate area for eavesdroppers, he then focuses back on Andy.

"Andy, you might want to go to the bathroom." Chris advises, trying to be discreet. She rolls her eyes, snatching the bag of chips from his hand.

"I'm fine _Dad_. I already went before I left the house." Andy chuckles, giving him a weird look. Chris isn't deterred, this time pointing to his neck.

"No, I _really think_ you should go to the bathroom." The words comes out curt and laced with meaning as he gives her jawline a direct look.

"What is _going on_ with everybody today?" She says, shoving the bag of chips back at him. "Did I suddenly grow warts or something?" She hops off the counter and leans down to look in the reflective surface of the microwave. "There's nothing on my...NECK!" Andy's eyes widen and she immediately clamps a hand over the huge hickey glaring back at her.

"HOLY CRAP!" She yells at Chris, who looks even more embarrassed than she does at the moment.

"Yeah. I'm gonna go." He all but runs out of the room, but not before passing her the rest of his chips.

Reaching into her gear bag, awkwardly trying to keep the hickey covered, she sends Nick an angry text message.

**_YOU. ARE. SO. DEAD._**


	18. Realizations Come Too Late

**Prompt**: _it took an ambulance ride, and a heart that stopped beating (even if it was only for twenty seconds) for Nick to finally admit his feelings for her (requested by __CookiesN'Cream124) / where Andy is partnered with someone else for the day, and ends up getting shot at, or some other life-threatening situation, and then Nick finds out and goes into overprotective mode  
_

**Author's Note: **Okay so I know the past couple updates have been extremely fluffy/sweet, so I guess I was due to write an angsty one. Also for this one, I combined two prompts. I hope it's still enjoyable!

* * *

A warm hand rests atop hers, the other moving to smooth back a piece of hair across her forehead. She looks so peaceful, like she's only sleeping and soon her eyes will flutter open and she'll tease him for being so worried. You'd think that previous experience with fallen friends would make situations like this easier to handle. Instead, he feels helpless as his eyes follow the multitude of wires connected to her broken body.

Something snaps inside him and he feels his eyes well up with tears, not caring there's a room full of cops standing right outside the door.

"Please wake up Andy." He wipes an errant tears away. "I never got to tell you something, something important, and I really don't want to tell you while you're like this. Not when you're so _still_." He runs a thumb across her knuckles, her hand overly warm in his. "Even if you laugh at me, or punch out my good eye, I'd rather tell you when you're awake. And I _need_ to tell you, so please Andy, wake up."

It took an ambulance ride, and a heart that stopped beating (even if it was only for twenty seconds) for Nick to finally admit his feelings for her.

* * *

_(But maybe it's best to start at the beginning.)_

* * *

"Andy, you there?" Chris' voice crackles on the radio at her shoulder. Keeping an eye on her surroundings, Andy answers his call.

"Yeah, what's up?" They had split up to look for some teenage taggers making a nuisance on an apartment building roof. They didn't expect any trouble, just some minor offenders, so Andy kept her gun holstered at her side. The last thing the station needed was another accidental shooting.

"Denise just called me. She had to take Christian to the hospital; he has a fever and won't stop throwing up." His voice lacks it's usual positivity, and Andy's heart goes out to him.

"Go be with your family." She tells him, feeling confident she can handle this call on her own.

"Are you sure?" He asks, uneasy about leaving his partner without backup, but still eager to get to his son. "Like are you really sure, if not I can wait until we finish this."

"Chris, _go_. I'll be fine." Famous last words.

* * *

_Ten minutes later she's staring down the barrel of a gun. There's a loud crashing sound and a white hot pain sears across her chest. Bringing her hands up to her face, she sees them covered with blood right before she passes out._

* * *

"Why _the hell_ weren't you with her?!" Nick slams Chris against the nurse's station, the computer teetering dangerously before righting itself. Despite his usual demure manner, this time Chris fights back. Pushing Nick roughly away from him, his boots squeaking against the floor, Chris straightens his shirt collar.

"Denise called. Christian had a fever and she had to take him to the hospital." Chris' voice is stern and rough. "I asked Andy twice if she needed me for backup, but she told me she was fine handling the call on her own." There's a slight tremor in Chris' voice at the mention of her name, but his steady gaze tells everyone that he would have done it again. It's not that he doesn't care about Andy, and doesn't feel slightly responsible for her being in critical condition, but he would drop anything and anyone to be by his son's side. That's how important Christian is to him.

"How is he?" This comes from Gail, standing off to the side and avoiding Nick as best as she can, not knowing what to make of this overprotective freakout he's currently having. (_Well, she _does_ know what to make of it, but really doesn't want to think about it now while Andy is in surgery. She wants Andy in top physical form before she confronts her. As for Nick...well _that _could wait until there were no longer witnesses around, as her fingers were itching to knock him out.)_

"He's still up in pediatrics," a relieved smile graces his face, "but he's gonna be fine." Before anyone can congratulate Chris, a loud snort comes from Nick.

"That's _great_. He's gonna be fine while _Andy_ is in there fighting for her life." He jabs an angry finger in the direction of the operating rooms.

"COLLINS!" Everyone turns to the owner of the booming voice. Frank is glaring at Nick in a way that makes everyone shy away from him. "Take a walk."

"But Andy-" Frank cuts him off.

"_But Andy_ is in the hands of the greatest surgeons the city has to offer, and she doesn't need you acting like a jackass in her name. So like I said, go take a walk before you say something else you'll regret."

Fuming, Nick slams his hand down on the nurse's counter, but walks away like Frank ordered.

* * *

_So, like I said. It took an ambulance ride, and a heart that stopped beating (even if it was only for twenty seconds) for Nick to finally admit his feelings for her._


	19. Big Favors

Prompt**: Andy asks Traci for a big favor **_  
_

* * *

Andy corners Traci after Parade, hoping to catch her before they both go off on their separate assignments. Traci smiles at her energetic friend and follows her into the decrepit trophy room, not recognizing that the pep in Andy's step is actually nervous energy.

"Okay, so I am about to ask you for a _really huge_ favor, and I need you not to judge me." Traci gives her a wary look, crossing her arms infront of her.

"Alright. This is a judge-free zone. What do you need?" She watches Andy start biting her nails, a tried and true tactic of avoidance. She's known Andy for a really long time and knows her little tics.

"I think I'm pregnant." Andy finally spits out, looking like she wishes she could swallow the words right back up.

Traci can't help it; her jaw drops in disbelief. "What? How? And with who?" She barely takes a breath, the questions shooting out of her mouth like bullets. The last she heard, Andy hadn't slept with anyone since Sam and that was almost a year ago.

Andy starts pacing the room, still biting her fingernails. "I've missed my last two periods and you know how regular I am. So I immediately thought it was just stress, but then I missed this month," she screws her face up in thought, "so I guess that would make it my last three periods." She shakes her head. "Whatever. I think I'm pregnant and I can't be pregnant. Not now." Traci can see the faraway look on her face as she thinks about something else, something unknown to Traci.

"Oh, he's gonna _flip the freak out_." Andy mutters to herself, almost as if she's forgotten the other occupant in the room.

Traci moves forward and puts her hands on Andy's shoulders, halting her pacing. "Okay Andy, I need you to breathe. _Who_ is the father?"

Guilt shimmers behind her eyes and Traci immediately feels a major storm is about to head their way.

"Nick." Her voice is small and tired, and Traci's heart immediately goes out to her.

"Oh my god." Slips out of Traci's mouth before she can stop the words.

Andy looks two seconds away from crying. "_Traci_."

Traci takes a deep breath, and smooths a piece of Andy's hair down. "Okay, I'm sorry honey. What do you need from me?"

Andy bites her lip. "A pregnancy test."

* * *

_Later that night_

* * *

"Three minutes. In three minutes my whole life will be decided by a tiny piece of pee-scented plastic." Andy paces in her bathroom, wearing a bright pink robe. It had been a gift from her mother and Traci knows that despite the loud color, Andy really loved it.

"There is a bright side to this Andy." That's what she's there for after all, to be the optimistic best friend lending support in a time of need.

"Yeah, and what's that? I can have play dates with Noelle? We can dress our kids up in little cop uniforms and stage shootouts?"

Traci laughs, "that's actually an adorable idea." Andy chucks a roll of toilet paper at her head.

"I don't think Nick will be angry with you." Traci says when she catches her breath. "He follows you around like a damn puppy."

Andy smiles dreamily, her face doing a terrible job of disguising her feelings for the ex-soldier, and Traci wonders how she ever missed their connection. "Yeah, he does."

Traci sticks her finger down her throat, miming a gagging noise. Andy laughs for the first time that day, and Traci counts it as a win.

"You know Gail is gonna kill you right?" Traci can't help but mention. She wisely decides _not_ to mention Sam.

"They broke up four months ago!" Andy yells, all while knowing Traci is right.

"Doesn't matter. She still thinks something happened between you two while you were undercover."

"Nothing happened! You know that!"

"_I_ know that, but nothing's gonna change _her_ mind."

Andy opens her mouth to say something, but the alarm on Traci's phone beats her to the punch. Looking a bit green, Andy picks up the pregnancy test and holds it gingerly like she's afraid it's gonna explode.

After a full minute, Traci can't stand the anticipation. She refrains from snatching the stick from Andy's grip. "Well! What is it?!"

"Looks like you're gonna be a godmother." Andy says, a big ole' smile plastered on her face despite her previous worry.


	20. Sometimes It's Good

**Prompt**: It's getting harder and harder for him to convince himself he's in love with Gail (_requested by CookiesN'Cream124_)

* * *

Sometimes it's good.

Moments like when he asks her to move in with him, the delighted smile on her face and the satisfaction he feels having put it there.

Moments like when they are driving down the highway, windows rolled down and a warm summer breeze wrapping around them, their hands interlocked as he listens to her sing some terrible pop song.

Moments where he truly loves her with all his fractured heart...but those moments are becoming too far and too few in between.

Now when they kiss, he'll spot a particular brunette out of the corner or his eye, his mind wandering to the six months where he felt connected to another human being a way he's never felt before.

Now when he sees Gail flirting with other men, trying to make him jealous, he feels nothing...but if he catches someone giving _her _so much as a look, he goes insane with jealousy.

Now when they are in bed together, he'll feel _her_ sliding in with them, _her_ breath heavy on his neck, _his_ dick growing hard with thoughts of imaginary fucking. The sudden intense desire makes him hold Gail's wrists down a little harder, makes him bite her lip a little deeper.

It's getting harder and harder for him to convince himself he's in love with Gail when the moment he buries himself in her, their pelvises knocking together, she'll open up her bright blue eyes, but instead he'll see warm brown ones.


	21. Realizations Come Too Late (part 2)

**Prompt: **Realizations Come Too Late (Pt. 1.5)

* * *

A body slides into the seat next to him, but he keeps his eyes trained on the floor. Ever since he heard about the ambulance, about Andy's _heart_ stopping, he hasn't felt like himself, and he knows he won't until he sees those bright brown eyes staring back at him.

"So, I heard you freaked out on Diaz." The soft low voice is not the one he expected. He expected Gail, Traci, hell even _Sam_, but that's not who sits down next to him.

"No offense, but I barely know you. So I think it's best if you just go." Nick tries as best as he can to tell Marlo to 'fuck off' without actually saying the words. He knows that until he's back to his normal self, he's going to be pissing off a lot of people and he'd rather keep that list down to his friends, those whom he knows will forgive him eventually.

For her part, Marlo just smiles and leans back into her seat. "I think I'd rather stay here if you don't mind." She takes out her cellphone and starts playing a game.

For a while, Nick ignores her. After all, she's not trying to talk to him or lend a shoulder to cry on. He figures that as long as she keeps it that way, she can stay. But when thirty minutes pass by in complete silence, Frank sending routine status texts about Andy's unchanging condition, he starts getting annoyed again.

"Really, you can go. I'm not gonna Hulk out on anyone." Nick says, his voice rough with disuse. "I'm fine."

"Sure you are." Nick feels his irritation rising when Marlo snorts, the corner of her mouth rising. "You think I can't tell when someone is in love with Andy McNally?" Marlo finally looks at him with a raised eyebrow. "You're not gonna be fine until she wakes up."

In that moment, Nick finds himself feeling pity for someone else. The tenseness in her eyes lets him know that she's not as calm as she seems, and for the first time Nick realizes that Sam must be freaking out somewhere, and Marlo probably needed to take a break from her boyfriend freaking out over his ex.

"I would say that I don't think anyone else has noticed," she continues, "but I think your display back there just alerted everyone to your feelings." She gives him a small smile, her hand patting his knee quickly, almost as if she didn't expect to do it.

"Besides, I'm probably the only person not upset with you so I don't think you should be picky about the company you get." Marlo tells him, her attention going back to her phone.

* * *

_Spoiler alert: I like Marlo and I'm interested in her storyline. I really hope she's not just brought in as a Sam/Andy obstacle and then forgotten about._


	22. You Are the One that I Want

**Prompt**: Nick and Andy discuss her pregnancy...plus a little extra fluff. (_A lot of you have been asking for the one where Sam finds out and I promise I'm working on it!_)

* * *

"Are you sure?" Nick's hands are a heavy but comforting weight on her shoulders.

Andy bites her lip, a usual sign of uncertainty, except her eyes are clear with purpose. "Yeah. He should hear it from me."

His sigh breezes through the wisps of hair that have escaped from her haphazardly done up bun. "Okay. Do you want me there?" She considers it for a moment, knowing that his company would be a huge comfort, but then realized how that would turn out. The last thing she needs is a giant pissing contest to take place over her...and since she has already picked Nick, it would only hurt them all more._  
_

"No. I think this is something I need to do alone." She notices his face fall slightly and the tiny pursing of his lips...like it does when he's preoccupied with something and doesn't want to burden her with it.

Lacing her fingers with his, she asks "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He shrugs, his eyes cloudy and unreadable, a total one eighty from the way his eyes normally look. She hates how closed off it makes her feel from him.

"_Nick_." Her voice is stern and demanding. He was not the kind to beat around the bush and she doesn't want him to start now. Not when they're about to start a family.

"It's just," he sighs, folding his arms in front of his chest, making her feel empty without his touch. "You guys haven't been together for months...almost a year. Why does he rate a private conversation from you now?" Andy sighs, realizing she's not going to get away from a pissing contest entirely.

"Because he still means a lot to me Nick. And he should hear it from me instead of through the grapevine. Hey-" She runs a hand down the side of his face, cupping his cheek, when she sees the self-doubt behind his eyes. "But not like I care about you okay? I _love_ you." She says and his eyes widen. It's the first time she's ever said it to him, and even though she hates that the moment is colored with traces of Sam, she can't help but feel happiness, as well as relief, flowing through her body at the reaction on his face.

From the beginning it was obvious what his feelings for her were, and he had spilled the beans about a month into their relationship. But knowing Andy's feelings for Sam, how hurt she still was deep inside, Nick let her choose the pace. He never pressured her to do anything before she was ready, never made her feel guilty for taking her time, and that was one of the reasons why she loved him.

Their relationship started as a slow burn, not like the whirlwind romances of Luke and Sam, and at first it made her doubt her feelings for Nick. Made her doubt ever starting things with someone she considered to be her best friend. But then time passed by and she realized that Nick was a different breed of man. He respected her in ways Luke and Sam failed to. Even though he worried about her while on the job, he never let it be an issue between them. He accepted it and let her do the job she so desperately loved without interfering, without sabotaging her or making her feel incompetent. And the best part of all was that there were no secrets between them. Nick opened up to her fully and without reservations about anything and everything she wanted to know. And that level of trust was something she didn't realize she desperately needed until he gave it to her.

"I have no regrets Nick. About _anything_. I made the best choice." She smiles softly when he finally leans into her hand, pressing a light kiss against her palm.

"I love you too, McNally." His eyes are clear and full of affection, and the gravity of the choice she's made, the sheer _rightness_ of it, fills her heart to the brim.


	23. Scars

**Prompt: **Andy and Nick discuss scars...and then sex happens.  
**Rating**: M**  
**

* * *

A long piece of brown hair escapes her ponytail and he brushes it back, feeling a raised scar behind her ear.

"Where did you get this one?" He asks, wanting to know every single detail about her.

"We had a cat when I was kid and it hated me." Andy runs her thumb across his bottom lip and he watches as a smile tugs on her lips. "Although to be fair, I did try to dump it into a bath full of water." Nick laughs at the mental image of a miniature Andy wrestling with a cat.

It's her turn to ask now.

"And what about this one?" The pad of her thumb circles a tiny sunken scar below his eye, which would normally be unnoticeable from a certain distance.

"Bar fight when I was sixteen. The guy who punched me had a ring on." He smiles at her raised eyebrow, apparently pleased he's able to surprise her. "I wasn't _always_ good old Saint Nick. I was a bit of a jackass if you can believe it."

Andy smirks, her eyes twinkling with mirth. "Oh, I can believe it."

She gives a shriek of surprise when he pounces on her and flips her onto her back, straddling her hips.

"That was mean. Apologize." He says a couple inches above her mouth, feeling the tendons of her wrists flexing beneath his palms.

"Never." She laughs, still struggling against his hands. Deliberately wiggling her hips, she arches her back upwards, her breasts brushing against his bare skin, the friction of his chest hair making her nipples harden. They can both feel his dick start to harden as she continues to move beneath him.

"You really don't want to do that." Pupils dilated and voice rough, his breathing comes out in sharp pants. Andy bites her lip as her upper body burrows down into the pillows, her hips rising, and Nick can feel his entire body flush with heat.

"Oh, really? Cause I really think I want to." She teases, her hips continue undulating beneath him. A tortured groan escapes him, and he buries his face in the warm flesh of her neck. Gently nipping the corded tendons, he can feel her moan against his teeth. Releasing one of her wrists, he quickly recaptures it with his other hand. With both wrists caught in his left hand, his right hand is free to roam the lithe body beneath him.

Fingers slowly working their way down her neck and bypassing her breasts (to her disappointment if that groan means anything,) he circles her belly button briefly with his thumb before making his way to the coarse brown hair above her pubis.

"_Nick_." His name escapes her lips in a breathless whisper when his fingers deftly part the flesh of her labia and slide against her clit.

"Say you're sorry." He whispers against her lips, before drawing her into a kiss. His thumb circles her clit in slow, lazy movements, his index finger teasing her opening just as slowly. He can feel her slick wetness and knows exactly what he's going to do next. It merely depends on her next move whether he ends up being gentle or rough.

"No." She's defiant to the last and it makes him want her even more. He would never admit it, but he kind of loves that she can never be dominated sexually. It makes him eager to continue trying until the moment she is.

"Then I guess you'll have to be punished." He bites her lower lip, shoving two fingers into her without warning, slowly sliding them in and out of her. Her back arches and he feels her contract around his fingers. As he feels her walls tighten further, her chest rising and falling rapidly, he adds a third and increases the speed. Her wrists strain against his hands, and the strength at which she's moving makes it difficult for him to keep a firm grasp on her, but he manages to keep a hold on her.

It isn't until he feels her spasm around him, a sure sign she's close to an orgasm, that he removes his fingers. Nick has to bite his tongue in order to keep from laughing at the angrily disheveled look on her face. A look he watches disappear the moment he readjusts their lower bodies, roughly parting her legs, and his dick enters her wet cunt.

(_He had a momentary thought to draw out her frustration, but who was he kidding? The erection straining against his lower abdomen was just as frustrated, and he could never deny her for long.)_

* * *

"You still haven't apologized." He pants next to her afterwards, sweat covering both their bodies in a glistening sheen. Faster than he thought possible for someone who looked so spent, Andy is suddenly straddling his hips, his wrists captured in hers this time.

"No? Well, then let me make it up to you." There's a playful smirk on her lips as she starts grinding against him, his semi-erect penis suddenly coming to life.

* * *

_Not really sure how this one turned out. I'm still trying to hone my skills when it comes to smut. If anyone ever has any tips, I'm all ears lol._


	24. Big Teeth, Small Kiss

**Prompt**: _He made her promise not to fall in love with him. Too bad he fell in love with her. _(requested by loveawaitss)  
**Author's Note**: I wrote this while listening to MSMR's song "_BTSK" _on repeat (**HINT LISTEN TO IT NOW!**)

* * *

Nick can't get her out of his mind as he gingerly runs his fingers over his lips in the dark confines of his bedroom. It haunts his nights, lingering in the morning air like a whisper of some forgotten dream. He figures it should be nothing but a far, distant memory of their undercover days; it's been two weeks since their last kiss after all.

Would he have known it was to be their last kiss, would he have acted differently? It's all he can think about in the lonely hours of the night when Gail is absent from his bed, which is becoming more and more frequent these days.

Would he have held _her_ face to his longer, his fingertips rabidly memorizing the flesh beneath them?

Would the faint impression of teeth felt behind closed lips instead have been the warm weight of her tongue against his?

Only once had he ever felt that elusive weight, sampled the unique taste of her mouth, that hint of coffee and toothpaste.

It was three nights after their arrival at the cover apartment, two months before Andy was to be introduced as Nick's new girlfriend. When they got the assignment, Andy threw herself into preparing for the role. She created a whole new background for herself, an entire childhood of favorite ice cream flavors and parental disappointments. _(He had a slight suspicion it was another product of Swarek's education.)_

But the biggest obstacle was to be the breaching of a certain barrier: the first kiss. They felt like pre-teens embarking on a rite of passage, fluttering hearts and sweaty palms all present and accounted for. The last time he had felt this nervous, he had been staring down the mouth of a rifle in Kandahar.

Like the lion-hearted woman she was, Andy approached it with a cool detachment, like it was just another day at the office. He tried taking her lead on it, knew that this, that_ he_, would be her first kiss after a devastating breakup with the man she loved. So he made jokes, recited movie lines to ease her, and himself, into this new territory.

(Now, sitting on his bed with a tepid breeze flowing through the open window, he realizes how he should have heeded his own playful warning to her.)

"_Don't fall in love with me_." He had whispered millimeters away from her upturned mouth, secure in his own feelings for a certain platinum blonde officer back home.

At first the joining of their lips was perfunctory, like kissing an old friend hello, and he thought they would be able to handle this change in their friendship. Then his hand accidentally slipped beneath the hem of her tank top and her fingers accidentally found their way beneath the opening of his collar, his fingertips brushing against the dip of her lower back while her fingertips casually stroked the nape of his neck, triggering an intense reaction in both of them.

For a moment in time, they forgot where they were. Forgot why they were in that small, dank apartment to begin with. The outside world became inconsequential, their thoughts going no further than to the next graze of teeth against lips, no further than to the air shared between their lungs.

According to Andy it had been a mistake, that she had let herself get carried away in the moment. He shrugged it off at the time, didn't let her know how carried away he himself had gotten, that he should share half the blame. What he kept back, what he refused to even admit to himself, was that the feeling of her in his arms, the gentle give and take of their lips, was the closest thing he ever felt to coming home, and that it terrified him to have such strong feelings from just one "fake" kiss. The job came first and he would spend the rest of the six months swallowing those feelings, grinding them into dust sized particles.

He just didn't expect to find those fragments filling in the tiny cracks of his soul, like mortar to brick.


	25. Let Me Go

**Prompt**: _Andy shows up on Sam's doorstep once again, but this time, it's not to push him against the wall and kiss him. It's because ever since she got with Nick, she refuses to go to bed angry. _(requested by CookiesN'Cream124...who gives really great prompts!)

* * *

"Andy?" There's a slight hint of panic in Sam's voice, and a smaller note of excitement, which she chooses to ignore. He looks back inside the dark interior of his house before stepping outside onto the front porch, closing the door behind him. "What are you doing here at two thirty in the morning?"

A distant memory plays behind her eyes, almost like it was a dream from another life, but that's not why she's here.

"To yell at you." She grits out, nostrils flaring in anger. "You promised me you weren't going to tell him. You _swore_."

Sam has the good sense to at least look apologetic. He holds his hands up in supplication. "I didn't mean to tell him, it just sort of slipped out."

"When? While you were gloating?" She scoffs disbelievingly.

This makes Sam smirk. "If Collins can't handle the competition-"

"There _is_ no competition." Andy snaps back, her arms crossed in front of her chest. "I'm not a toy for you two to fight over! I've already made my choice and _you_ can't seem to deal with it. _I'm with Nick_." She punctuates each word with stressed emphasis.

"It didn't seem that way when you kissed me back." He snaps, the tendons in his neck straining against the skin.

"We were undercover Sam. There were people watching us. _Of course_ I had to kiss you back." She replies exasperatedly.

"Then why are you here?" A smirk tugs at the side of his mouth, obviously thinking he's won.

"I'm here because I love him." She says, a warm feeling of calm permeating through her body.

Sam's face becomes blanched of all color. "What?"

"I love him." She repeats to his apparent dismay. "I came here because I want you to accept that and to stop trying to sabotage my relationship with Nick."

They stand in silence while she waits for her words to sink in.

"What if I can't do that? I still love you Andy." He says, his voice low and rough with pain.

Andy reaches out and gently holds his hand. "If you love me, you'll let me go."

Giving it a squeeze, she releases his hand and walks off his porch.

Off to Nick, the man she loves.


	26. Unsurprising Revelations

**Prompt: **Andy tells Nick she's pregnant.  
**Author's Note**: Here's another fluffy one.

* * *

"Hey, I got Mexican." Nick says, the heavy bag in his hand giving off a strong aroma of meat and cheese. Normally Andy would be salivating at the thought of biting into a nice warm burrito, but ever since she found out she was pregnant, she's become sensitive to most exotic foods. _(It took all her willpower not to puke when Oliver brought in Indian for lunch that afternoon.)_

"That's great." She tries to smile, but the closer he gets with that bag the worse her stomach starts to churn.

"I hope you don't mind, but I ate one of your burritos on the way over. I just couldn't wait." He places the bag down on the coffee table in front of her, a goofy smile on his face as he leans down for a kiss. It's that proximity, his breath saturated with remnants of his early snacking, that pushes her over the edge. Holding a hand to her mouth, Andy runs to the bathroom, praying that she makes it to the toilet in time. She distractedly feels his presence behind her, but she's more preoccupied with the bile currently filling her mouth to turn around and check.

Lifting the toilet lid, her throat burning, Andy spills the contents of her stomach into the porcelain bowl. Distant thoughts of not letting her boyfriend of only five months see her puke her guts out swirl in her mind, but she figures she gets a pass if that boyfriend is the reason _why_ she's puking said guts out.

Strands of her long brown hair fall forward, almost falling into the toilet, but Nick pulls her hair up and off the back of her neck. The cool air makes her feel slightly better.

"I didn't realize my breath was that bad." He jokes, and it makes her feel even guiltier for keeping this a secret from him for a week. It's just, she was scared of how he'd react, no matter what Traci told her. Ever since they started dating five months ago, he's been the best boyfriend she's ever had...and the whole time she was terrified for the moment when the other shoe dropped. She just didn't expect that shoe to be a baby's bootie.

A large, soothing hand starts rubbing her back, and she feels the nausea begin to dissipate. Andy leans back against the tub, using the small hand towel he handed her to wipe her face.

"Are you okay?" His hand continues their ministrations, and she no longer feels her stomach in her throat. No, now she feels her eyes burning with shameful tears. Letting out a strangled sob, never hating her hormones more than in that moment, she finally tells him.

"I'm pregnant." She says with a tiny shrug of her shoulders.

For a moment, it's like he doesn't hear her. "What?" He asks, an unreadable look on his face.

"I'm knocked up. I've got a bun in the oven. I'm in a family way." She clarifies, starting to get upset all over again. She mentally prepares herself for all scenarios; him freaking out and running away from her apartment screaming as the most frequent option her scumbag brain supplies her with, but to her surprise that's not what happens.

Well, kinda. He _does_ leave the room, but not running or screaming for sanctuary.

Half expecting to hear the front door slam shut behind him and for her life to suddenly become a Sunday night Lifetime movie, she's even more shocked to find him re-enter the room holding a small white box.

Sitting back down on the floor next to her, he hands her the box wordlessly. Andy stares at the box, still confused as to why everything isn't turning into her worst nightmare.

"What is it?" She asks, looking at him for answers.

Not meeting her eyes, he points to the box with his chin. "Just open it."

Removing the small slivers of tape holding the top of the box down, she lifts the lid and feels like crying all over again. Inside the small box is a tiny white onesie with a picture of a police car smack dab in the middle, the words "_My Daddy's Got Your Back_" written around it.

"I've known for a couple days." Nick admits, this time meeting her eyes.

Andy frowns at him, "What do you mean you _know_? I'm gonna kill Traci." She mutters angrily under her breath, already thinking of ways to murder her so-called best friend whom she had sworn to secrecy.

Nick can't help it; he laughs. "Traci didn't tell me."

"Then how-"

"You left the pregnancy test in the garbage, Andy." He rolls his eyes playfully. "So don't kill Traci. It'll be hard to break in a new candidate for Godmother so soon."

"Godmother. So you're _not_ freaking out?" A tiny line appears between her eyebrows as she contemplates this sudden turn of events. There's not a shred of regret on his face, and she wonders why that scares her even more. How can he be so calm about this?

"Does it look like I am?" Reaching out to hold her hand, his eyes are bright and clear.

"No, you look like someone gave you a handful of happy pills." Andy's hand tightens around his, combating the teasing words. "How are you not freaking out? I've known a week and I still can't believe it."

"Because I lo-" Andy holds a hand up, halting his words in their tracks. "No, don't say it. Not just cause I'm pregnant and about to be your baby mama."

Nick opens his mouth again, another attempt to express his feelings for her, when she slaps a hand over his mouth, effectively silencing him. "I said don't!" His eyes widen in amused irritation, rolling his eyes downward to her hand. Andy gives him a pleading look, "Please, just wait. If you still feel this way after the..._baby_ is born," the whole sentence feels like marbles in her mouth, "_then_ you tell me."

Waiting for a consenting nod, and only when she gets it does she lower her hand.

"So...we're having a baby?" Andy asks, eyes wide with child-like innocence, fingers lightly brushing over the onesie still inside the box. Were they really going to do this? Have a baby after only dating for five months?

Nick leans forward and kisses her forehead, cradling her face in his hands afterward. "Yeah, we're having a baby."

A mischievous look crosses his face, "I just hope he or she has my sense of humor cause heaven knows you can't take a joke."

Her gasp of indignation is silenced by his lips covering hers.

* * *

_I really want to thank all of the follows and reviews I've been getting for this series! I never expected the amount of love I've gotten for something I didn't even plan on writing over a week ago! I really hope I can keep up at the pace I've been going, but I know it's gonna be hard during a three week hiatus, so please keep sending those excellent prompts my way!_


	27. Morning Rituals

**Prompt**: _She forgot to tell him she loved him this morning_. (requested by CookiesN'Cream124)

* * *

Nick and Andy had a ritual every morning while they were undercover.

Waking up at eight sharp, they'd make breakfast side by side and eat together while going over any new case information that Nick might've procured, and if it was every other day, they'd then run 5k in the local park. The rest of their days might have been spent apart while they both went to their respective jobs: Nick to his cover job and Andy to waitress at the local diner where she and Nick first "met."

But each day started the same way: together.

_(Oh, and there was also one other thing, one other tiny little ritual. Something Andy refrained from putting into her skinny red moleskine.)_

Every morning before Nick would leave to "go to work," she would stand at the door and tell him she loved him, giving him a little kiss on the cheek or lips. It started off as a joke, a little undercover humor to keep things light and interesting, and eventually they saw that it helped give their story a little more credence with the neighbors when they saw this little ritual performed by the couple at the end of the hall.

But then the morning of what would be their last day undercover, Andy had let him sleep in. At eight on the dot, she had walked into the living room, saw the huge bruise forming under his right eye and took pity on him. She knew a hit like that, as well as sleeping on that tiny couch, would have made for a miserable night's sleep. So she made her own breakfast, and alternated between her big book of crossword puzzles and writing in her notebook, waiting for the inevitable groan Nick would make when he woke up.

Later, when Nick would be whisked away from her without his cellphone or knowledge of where he'd be, a terrible feeling settled into her gut. There was a kiss, there's always a kiss, but her mind had been too preoccupied with worry and so she forgot to say she loved him.

It wasn't in her official report, or even her "diary," but that little misstep had been the reason she felt ill the moment he left her sight.


	28. Late Night Sleepovers

**Prompt: **Late Night Sleepovers**  
**

* * *

"Sometimes I wish we were back undercover." Fingers interlocking, the solid weight of his palm against hers feels familiar; feels steady in a way her life doesn't anymore.

There's a low snicker and a slight shifting of the body next to her as he resettles himself into the bed. "After all your complaining about going home? I find that highly unlikely." Nick mumbles sleepily, eyes still closed.

Andy turns onto her left side, bringing her right arm across her body. With her right hand sandwiched between her head and the pillow, she watches the constant rise and fall of his chest as he breathes in and out. Having him out of her sight had been a hard change, one she is still having trouble with. It's what started these innocent late night sleepovers.

She sighs, her breath a light breeze across his face. "Everything was easier. Black and white." She watches headlights from outside momentarily flicker across his face, his lower lip jutting out slightly more than the top, and no longer knows whether she's talking about undercover anymore.

"Besides, the company wasn't _so_ terrible."

This makes him open one eye to look at her, a smile tugging at his lips like she just confessed her undying love for him or something.

"Shut up," she mutters before he can respond and turns onto her back, fingers still meshed with his.


	29. Bloody Nightmare

**Prompt: **Bloody Nightmares (requested by my own morbid/angsty desires)  
**Warning**: mentions of blood and violence

* * *

"I'm coming!" Andy calls out to the person banging at her door at one in the morning.

Closing the front of her bright pink robe and stepping into a pair of slippers, she walks out of her bedroom and into the living room. Wiping the sleep from her eyes, she looks through the peephole and sees a very disheveled Nick on the other side.

"Nick? What are you doing here?" She asks, throwing the door open. From what she can see in the dim light of the hallway, he looks like he hasn't slept in days. There's stubble growing on his jawline and dark shadows under his eyes, not to mention the clothes that look haphazardly thrown on. But it's the eyes, the frantically penetrating eyes, that get her attention.

The way he's looking at her, it's like he's just seen a ghost.

However before she can ask him what's wrong, he's leaning forward and placing hands on either side of her face. The feeling of his hands on her after weeks of nothing since their return to "normal life" causes her to freeze on the spot, her body responding to the familiarity of his touch. This gives him the opportunity to search her eyes, looking for _what_ she has no idea, but something clicks behind his eyes and she realizes he's found it.

And then he kisses her right over the threshold.

For a moment, Andy thinks she's in the middle of some erotic dream...but everyone's much too dressed for that. It's certainly not their first kiss ever, but there's something different, something desperate about it. She automatically feels her lips responding (_call it conditioning_) but realizes that's not what he came for when he immediately pulls away.

"I'll see you tomorrow at Parade," is all he says after giving her the most unexpected kiss of her life.

"Yeah..." she mumbles distractedly, fingertips pressed to her lips in disbelief as she watches him walk down the hallway.

* * *

_Thirty six minutes earlier..._

* * *

He pulls the trigger, completely confident in his assessment that the gun is empty.

So then why is her body slumping towards the floor, sporting a hole in her forehead that wasn't there a second ago?

His hands shake uncontrollably as he falls to his knees beside her, the harsh clatter of metal on cement filling the room as the gun falls from his grip. He can hear distant voices talking to him, feel a hard clap on the back, whether in congratulations or sympathy he doesn't know, but there's this buzzing sound in his ears and it's all he can focus on.

Well that and her terrified, tear-stained face now forever frozen behind his eyes.

Feeling drops of moisture on his face, taking it for sweat, he pulls an unsteady hand down his face. When he looks down, all he can see is blood, fire engine red against his skin.

The same color currently pooling on the floor.

_That's when he wakes up._

Heart racing, sweat soaked sheets beneath him, Nick brings trembling hands up to eye level, memories of his nightmare still throttling him.

But even seeing his hands clean, no blood stains within sight, doesn't abate the fear coursing through his body.

No, only one thing would do that.


	30. Secret Undercover Diary

Author's Note | So I've been a terrible updater I KNOW. But I've been so blocked and every time I write something down, I think it sucks and then I just abandon my writing for days. Also, it's even harder for me to write McCollins now that it's happening for realz. Most of my writing is wish fulfillment/fix-it-fic but since I'm actually happy with the show right now, it's like my brain is flatlining. _ BUT I FINALLY WROTE SOMETHING I DON'T HATE! _ As always, I love all of you so much and hope you still enjoy my fic!

* * *

Prompt | **excerpts from her (Andy) secret undercover diary **_(written for petragem on omg_rookieblue)_

* * *

**Day 17**

I accidentally walked in on Nick in the bathroom. Yes, again. But hey, it's totally not my fault. I told him to put a sock or a rubber band or something over the door knob when he wants to have "private" time. I mean, I get it. It's not like I've never lived with a boy before. The last time it happened, I could barely look him in the eye for two days without cracking up. It's just, I've never seen someone's _ears_ blush before.

(Nick would kill me if he knew I was writing this down.)

-

**Day 26**

I'm going to kill Nick. We've been stuck in this car for hours doing surveillance and he's been singing the same song over and over again. "More Than Words" by Extreme is a great song...just not twenty-seven times in a row. Oh god, he's started doing the hand gestures.

(REMINDER: bring earplugs...or maybe a gag.)

-

**Day 33**

Had the dream again last night. I was stuck in that storage locker, hands tied and mouth gagged, but this time Luke wasn't there to save me. Nick heard me from the living room and woke me up, even though I've told him to just leave me alone when I have a nightmare. But of course he never listens. Almost got a black eye for his effort.

He wouldn't leave my side until I stopped shaking though. I should probably make him breakfast tomorrow to say thank you.


	31. Supermarket Sweep

Prompt | **Imagine your OTP going shopping, and spending a lot of the time taking out the stuff their child keeps placing in the cart.**

* * *

"Don't think I don't know what that look means. We _have_ to present a united force against the enemy." Nick shakes his head, intent on standing his ground. He will not be swayed by a pretty face.

"Nick, he's a five year old boy, not an army." Andy rolls her eyes as she picks up the oh-so-offensive item from the shopping cart and gives it a once over.

"Exactly!" He points in the air, looking like the dork he is. "Once you let him think he's won, we'll _never_ be in charge."

"Come on, just this once. He looks so cute thinking we don't know." She pouts at him, causing his resolve to waver slightly. He's never really been able to hold out against her for long.

"It's filled with sugar and has no nutritional value." At least it can't be said he went down without a fight.

"So? It's delicious." At this point, he's wondering whether she's really fighting on behalf of their son or herself.

"Andy."

"Nick, just look at him. How can you say no to that face?" Following her gaze down the aisle, Nick sees their son's tiny face peeking out from behind a display of cereal boxes. The moment he sees his son's eyes widen and then immediately dodge from view, looking so much like his mother in that moment, he knows he's lost. Sighing in defeat, he watches Andy's smile widen knowing she's won.

"When he starts bringing girls in through his bedroom window, don't say I didn't warn you."

Andy rolls her eyes, tossing the box back into the shopping cart. "He takes after me way more than he takes after you."

"Meaning?" Her arm links with his as they continue down the aisle.

"_Meaning_ he'll be hot-wiring our cars way before he's interested in the opposite sex."

* * *

_Slowly working my way through half-finished drabbles. SLOWLY._


	32. Is He Worth It?

Prompt: _As long as we're going down...baby you should stick around  
_

* * *

"Hey, you okay?" Nick gently pulls at their joined hands, catching her attention. She's been way too silent, especially around him, and somehow she has a feeling he knows exactly what she's thinking. Spending six months with only each other for company made them close, closer than she ever expected to be with someone she originally thought of as a mere army grunt.

"I'm just freaking out a bit." Andy doesn't bother glossing over the fact that her stomach is in knots. It wouldn't be fair to either of them.

It's their first time in public as a couple, and part of her just wants to press rewind to the moment when she told Nick okay. To go back and say she needs more time, _anything_ to get her out of this, because the way Sam and Gail are looking at her right now makes her feel like she's crossing a line she'll never be able to go back to. (_Her conscience, which sounds suspiciously like Gail, whispers 'girl code' into her ear.) _The confused looks and the harsh glares are all working their way into her skin, clogging her pores with doubt. It's only the pressure of Nick's hand in hers that keeps her from turning tail and running right back out of the bar.

As if he can sense her internal meltdown, Nick pulls her aside and stoops a little ways down in order to be completely eye level.

"Whatever you want to do Andy, I'm fine with it. I told you I'd wait as long as it takes and I meant that." His voice is clear and caring, like her feelings are the only thing that matter. The way his eyes focus on her entirely sends warmth like she's never known throughout her entire body. Most of the men she's dated were cloaked in some sort of secrecy, so Nick's honesty and no-nonsense attitude when it came to feelings is new to her...and she kind of has no idea how to deal with that. Usually she's the open book, the one trying to get answers like she was pulling teeth, but with Nick, everything he thinks about her is as clear as the nose on his face.

She stares at him for a moment just taking in that face.

The face that loves bringing her breakfast in bed every morning after. The wrinkles that form in the corner of his eyes when he smiles and laughs. The slight pursing of his lips when he's asleep next to her as if he's just waiting to be kissed.

Suddenly, she's wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer, leaving not a hair of space between them. In that moment, all her fears and worries melt away as an intense feeling of rightness settles deep into her bones.

Nick lets out a surprised grunt when her lips meet his, obviously not expecting her feelings to go completely one-eighty. Even so, it doesn't stop him from cradling the back of her neck and from kissing her back just as fiercely. In the short time they've been dating, she's come to learn that he's naturally affectionate and never misses an opportunity to touch her. It makes her feel desirable. It makes her feel wanted.

He _is_ worth it, and she's gonna make sure he (and everybody else) knows it.

* * *

I was having a little bit of trouble with this one so I hope it turned out okay!  
Prompt lyric comes from MSMR's 'Dark Doo Wop.'_  
_


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